Episode summary
The Healthy Advisor: When Pressure, Setbacks and Life Transitions Collide With Terri Kallsen
Summary
Terri Kallsen traces a career built through repeated life transitions: starting at 3M, moving into financial services at Thrivent, then joining USAA while studying for the CFP exam and raising three children. She says the common thread was an analytical mindset, a growing commitment to planning, and a desire to do what was right for clients as a fiduciary. Passing the CFP became a defining milestone, and she now sees the designation as the profession’s standard for competency and integrity.
She also describes a difficult ethical crossroads at Schwab, where she rose to lead retail after running Schwab Private Client and the branch network. Terri says she objected to Schwab Intelligent Portfolios because the no-fee robo design could include up to 30% cash allocation for younger clients, which she felt was not the right fit in a bull market. She left on good terms, and later SEC action confirmed disclosures were misleading.
Running has been her outlet through pressure and change. Terri says marathons taught discipline, patience and resilience, and that those habits carried into leadership at Schwab, Thrivent, USAA and Rise Growth Partners. She frames leadership as staying aligned with true north, even when the easiest or trendiest path is not the best one for clients.
Key takeaways
- Terri Kallsen says the CFP mark is the “gold standard” because it reinforces fiduciary responsibility and client-first advice.
- She says her objection to Schwab Intelligent Portfolios centered on a potential 20% to 30% cash allocation for young investors in a bull market.
- Terri says the SEC later found Schwab’s robo disclosures were misleading and the firm paid roughly $180 million in fines.
- She says running has been a constant source of therapy, discipline and resilience through marriages, moves and career pressure.
- Terri says her leadership style is shaped by asking whether she can “sleep well at night” with the decisions she makes.
Notable quotes
“The CFP is the standard for fiduciary responsibility and for doing what's right for clients, no matter what”
“when life throws you challenges, you either face up and keep going, or you give up, and I knew I had to keep going”
“running is cheaper than therapy, and I agree with them”
How the episode opens
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Welcome to the Healthy Advisor, a podcast from Wealth Management focused on advisors personal well-being and healing. I'm Diana Britton, executive editor of Wealth Management, and in this podcast we explore some of the struggles and personal development issues facing advisors and financial services professionals, and how to get to a place of healing
For mind, body, and spirit. Hello and welcome to the latest episode of the Healthy Advisor podcast, and thanks for joining us. As you may know, this is the podcast focused on financial advisor health and well-being, and today's guest knows a lot about that.
Her name is Terri Colson. She's a managing partner and head of partnerships at Rise Growth Partners. Terri, thank you so much for being on the podcast.
You're welcome, Diana. It's great to be here. Thank you for asking, and I can't tell you what a great way to start off the new year.
We're already in February, but to be talking about healthy advisors is very important at this time of year. Yeah, absolutely. Terri has had an outstanding career in financial services over the last 30 years.
During her tenure at Schwab, she led 7,000 employees and managed 1.6 trillion in assets, played a key role in transforming Wealth Enhancement Group as COO, and over the last 2 years she's been instrumental in building Rise Growth, the RIA investing company started by former United Capital CEO Joe Duran, and this year she's serving as chair of the CFP board, a huge undertaking. I I give you so much credit for doing that, Terri. And so, Terry's done all of this while raising three children, moving three times, and being a a significant mentor to many women and young professionals in the industry.
From the episode’s captions: roughly the first two minutes, lightly cleaned. Keep watching on YouTube →
Topics
- leadership transitions
- fiduciary duty and ethics
- wealth management culture
- marathon training resilience
- finding your true north
Companies and tickers mentioned
- SCHW
- Charles Schwab
- Wealth Enhancement Group
- Rise Growth Partners
- United Capital
- CFP Board
- Hollins University
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Summary, takeaways and quote selection by Octagon. Quotes are short excerpts; the full conversation is in the episode.
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